Privatizing space-derived data: A case study of the effects of the Land Remote-Sensing Commercialization Act of 1984 on the academic geography community
The privatization of the land remote-sensing satellite system (Landsat) served as a case study for examining the effects of a policy action, the Land Remote-Sensing Commercialization Act of 1984 (Public Law 98-365), on users of government information. The literature review covered policy studies, information science, government information policy and clarified the concepts of privatization vs. commercialization, effect vs impact, use and users of government information, and scientific and technical information policy. A qualitative case study was employed to separate and describe the predicted effects of the law from the policy and political context. It highlighted the contribution of the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science to PL98-365 which mandated the establishment of a national archive for land remote sensing data. The empirical research phase incorporated two data collection methods: a survey of academic geographers specializing in remote sensing with experience in using Landsat data, and a content analysis of published research in four remote sensing journals. A questionnaire to a sample of 118 US academic geographers resulted in a response rate of 57.5%. It collected data concerning changes in the research behavior and attitude of the respondents since the enactment of Public Law 98-365 in 1984. Change was measured by comparing data between two periods from 1982 to 1988, three academic years before and after the law's passage. Results showed that the majority of the respondents were unable to pay for all the Landsat data they needed and that they used less of it in their research. 83% of those responding purchased no Landsat data after 1985. Open-ended questions collected comments which reflected the strong feeling of the user community toward the commercialization. The most noticeable effects since EOSAT's takeover were the increased costs and copyright-like restrictions on the data.
- Research Organization:
- Texas Univ., Austin, TX (United States)
- OSTI ID:
- 5527015
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: Thesis (Ph.D.)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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POLICY AND ECONOMY
99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS//MATHEMATICS, COMPUTING, AND INFORMATION SCIENCE
LANDSAT SATELLITES
COMMERCIALIZATION
REMOTE SENSING
LEGISLATION
ATTITUDES
GEOGRAPHY
INFORMATION
PUBLIC LAW
SURVEYS
LAWS
SATELLITES
293000* - Energy Planning & Policy- Policy
Legislation
& Regulation
990400 - Law